A Ferrari F1 car – Tipo 625 Monoposto from 1954 is up for sale via RM Sotheby’s website. This is the car which was owned and campaigned by former F1 driver Alfonso de Portago, according to Robb Report. While the car doesn’t have any official base price, the estimate for this red devil is around $4 million. Previously, Sotheby’s did not any get bids a couple of years ago for this car during the Monterey Car Week.
This car is the successor to the one that helped Alberto Ascari win the 1952 and 1953 championships. It is from the inaugural F1 decade and just after Ascari won the first championships for Ferrari. Thus, this 1954 car holds a lot of historical significance.
This car is not just a collectible though, it is eligible to race as well. Some of the vintage racing events like Goodwood Festival of Speed, Grand Prix de Monaco Historique, France’s Le Mans Classic, and Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion can welcome this car to feature in their events.
It has a naturally aspirated 2-liter inline-four engine, and the Italian brand produced it as part of Enzo Ferrari’s new 500 F2 racers in 1952. In 1954 the car got upgrades to Formula 1 spec. Alfonso de Portago bought the car after this upgrade.
As for Portago, he had an aristocratic background, born to a Spanish noble family. Before racing in F1, the Spaniard also did Bobsleigh and horsing. He drove for the Scuderia in F1 in the 1956 and 1957 seasons. Unfortunately, in ’57 itself, Portago tragically died in a horrific crash at the Mille Miglia. It was huge tragedy as the accident also killed nine spectators in a violent spinning crash at 240 kph (150 mph).
How expensive can F1 cars be sold for?
The most expensive F1 car sold to date is also from 1954. It was Juan Manuel Fangio’s championship-winning Mercedes-Benz W196R, which got sold for around $30 million.
Coming to modern F1 cars, Lewis Hamilton’s first-ever Mercedes car is the most expensive car, second to the ’54 Mercedes overall. The Mercedes W04 that Hamilton drove in 2013 sold for $18.8 million just in November 2023.
After Hamilton’s Mercedes, Michael Schumacher’s 2003 championship-winning Ferrari comes third on this list. The F2003-GA got a price of nearly $15 million in 2022. Apart from the 2003 car, many of Schumacher’s cars are on this list. The German’s 2001 and 2002 championship-winning cars also sold for around $6-7 million each.
The 625 Monoposto breaking any records is unlikely given its $4 million estimate. Although, as it is an auction, nothing can be said given F1 hardcore fans crave for such vintage cars. Just like Fangio’s 1954 Mercedes went for a whopping $30 million, anything is possible.
